Drowned Rats
by AliasCWN
Summary: The Rat Patrol goes out in a storm and find that the Germans are not the only deadly thing on the desert.
**Drowned Rats**

By: AliasCWN

It was the rainy season in the desert and the Allied soldiers who were stationed in North Africa were getting a break from the fighting. Heavy armor tended to bog down during the rain storms so both sides settled down in the areas they already controlled and waited for the roads to dry out. That is, most of them waited. A few brave souls, or perhaps foolhardy ones, were known to roam the desert between storms.

One such group of souls, four men in two jeeps, were running ahead of a bank of clouds chasing the rumor of German troop movement. Scout planes had not been able to confirm or disprove the stories since they hadn't been able to get airborne. Rather than wait for the skies to clear, headquarters had sent out the Rat Patrol.

Sam Troy gripped the base of the 50 caliber machine gun for balance as he studied the dark, rolling clouds. They looked closer than they had just a few minutes ago. He reached forward and tapped his driver on the shoulder. When the driver looked over Troy told him to stop. With a wave of his hand he signaled Tully to pull up beside them.

"Jack, what do you make of those clouds?"

Sgt. Jack Moffitt, the only British member of the team, glanced behind him at the clouds in question. "They're getting closer by the minute. I suggest we find some shelter before we lose this race."

Troy nodded at the expected answer. The desert around them was flat in spots but there were a few wadis in the distance.

"Do you have a place in mind?"

Moffitt considered the question as he studied the terrain around them. "There really aren't a great many options."

"Well, pick one, those clouds aren't going to wait." Troy climbed into the back of his jeep to scan the desert around them. He couldn't see any high ground that would offer them much protection. Staying on the low ground held no appeal at all. The fast moving desert storms could dump a lot of water in a very short time.

"Very well. Shall we lead?" At Troys' nod, Moffitt directed Tully toward a hill in the distance that had a few scrub trees struggling to make a stand near the top.

Tully floored the gas pedal and raced for the hill. He maneuvered the jeep up the slope past the scrawny trees, aiming for the highest point he could find. Fat, heavy raindrops were splattering the dust on the hood before the jeep rolled to a stop.

Tully parked on top of the hill while leaving enough room for Hitch to park his jeep alongside. They left about four feet of space between the two vehicles. Hitch jumped from his seat to grab a tarp from the rear of his jeep. Tully had the camo netting draped over his jeep and was spreading it to cover the top of the second jeep. Using it as support, they stretched the waterproof tarp over the netting as a shelter. Troy and Moffitt helped fasten the edges so the wind couldn't whip it away. As the rain started to come down faster, the wind picked up and tore at their shelter.

The four of them huddled together under the tarp between the jeeps. The tarp didn't reach all the way to the ground so the wind blew some of the rain underneath. The wind whistled around the vehicles competing with the rain pounding on the tarp. The noise was deafening. They were hoping the storm would pass quickly but it seemed that that would not be the case. After nearly an hour there was still no let up in the ferocity of the assault. The sun had lost out to the clouds, now the gloom made visibility poor.

As they crouched together, trying to stay as dry as possible, they heard the radio crackle to life.

"I'll get it Sarge." Hitch volunteered to respond to the call. Crawling out from under the tarp, he fiddled with the radio dials. They could hear him talking but the wind and rain muffled the words. They watched him walk around the jeep as he disconnected the call and lowered the antennae.

"The tarp is coming loose on the side. Since you're already wet, why don't you tie it down?" Troy called to his driver. Troy and Moffitt shared a smile as they heard the blond grumbling. They watched his legs, which was all they could see, as he walked around to the far side of the jeep. The tarp stopped flapping as the blond secured it to the frame.

Tully thought he heard a shout, but he wasn't sure. He tried to locate Hitch but he couldn't find him. Worried, he scurried from the shelter.

"What's going on?" Troy called as Tully pushed past them.

"I heard something."

The look of concern on the lanky drivers face set off alarm bells. Troy and Moffitt jumped to their knees and followed him. Tully was already around the side by the time they made it to their feet. They had to hold onto the jeeps as they moved because the rain had turned the sand to a slick, greasy muck.

"Tully!" Moffitt called over the wind.

'Over here."

When they reached Tully they found him trying to stretch his arm far enough to reach Hitchcock. The blond had slipped in the wet sand and fallen into the water filled wadi. He couldn't get any footing because the sand kept giving way beneath his weight. His soaked jacket was making it difficult for him to move his arms. As Troy watched, his head sank under the water. He popped up sputtering and coughing, kicking his legs to try to stay afloat.

Moffitt tapped Troy on the shoulder and handed him a coil of rope. Troy got ready to throw it, calling to his driver. The rope sailed through the air to land short as Hitchcocks' head went under the water again. The blonds eyes were wide when he resurfaced and looked wildly around for the rope. Troy was pulling it back to throw it again when Tully reached down and grabbed it.

Tully picked up the end of the rope and wrapped it twice around his hand. Squeezing it tight into a fist so he wouldn't lose his grip, he jumped into the water. He kicked off the sand, pushing himself toward the struggling blond.

Troy let the rope play out as Tully surged forward. Moffitt, behind him, tightened his own grip on the other end. They braced themselves against the jeep and held onto the frame with their free hands.

Hitch was tiring fast as he sank under the water again. His lungs felt like they would burst if he didn't get more air. He threw his hand out blindly, trying to keep afloat. As his hand came down it connected with something solid. Closing his fingers around the object, he found himself holding onto Tullys arm.

Tully reached out with his free hand and pulled Hitch toward him. He looked over his shoulder and saw the sergeants braced against the jeep. With a nod of his head he clung to Hitch with one hand and the rope with the other.

Troy and Moffitt wrapped the rope around the base of the 50 and braced their feet against the jeeps body and began to pull. They didn't stop until both Tully and Hitch had a grip on the frame of the vehicle.

Moffitt helped support Tully, guiding him carefully around the back of the jeep and under the tarp. Troy had to help support Hitch who was trembling and stumbling as he fell to his knees and crawled under their shelter. Troy reached above their heads into the back of the jeep and pulled out two of their wool blankets. He handed one to Tully and gently wrapped the second one around the shoulders of his shaking driver. He began to rub the younger mans' arms briskly, trying to generate some heat. As he worked he could hear the other mans' teeth chattering with cold.

Tully was cold too but he hadn't expended as much energy so he warmed up fairly quickly. Moffitt had done what he could to help. Troy was concerned about Hitch. Half an hour later he was still shaking and his lips were a pale blue. Moffitt got another blanket out of the second jeep and wrapped that one around the blond too.

The wind eventually died and the rain began to slow. The fat raindrops became smaller and smaller until they finally stopped altogether. The clouds didn't blow away to leave a clear blue sky but they were no longer black and threatening.

Moffitt ventured out from beneath the shelter to check the weather situation.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you look like a drowned rat?" Tully smiled at Hitch as he attempted to lighten the mood.

The blond smiled weakly as he shivered with cold. "You too." He looked around at his three friends and offered his heartfelt thanks.

"Any time." Was the chorus of answers.

"Hey Hitch. What was the radio call?" Troy suddenly remembered what had started the entire ordeal.

"Oh that." Hitch shrugged. "They wanted to warn us that there was a storm headed our way."


End file.
